12 January 2011

This blog has touched on the public toilet problem a few times. Necessary facilities like this are important if you want your parks, streets and transit to be successful. The private businesses cannot always provide this service to the public, and the city park toilets are often closed, unusable, unsanitary or unsafe; and both private and public toilets have limited hours. Twenty-some years ago, I was in Paris and saw self cleaning public toilets that cost the equivalent of 25 cents per use. They were located in places with high tourist foot traffic. A quarter century later they have made it to this continent. How long until they make it to the Midwest? Note that in this case, an advertising company installs them in return for 20 years of advertising space:

Toronto’s first automated public toilet is now a top tourist photo destination.

The $400,000 Harbourfront street potty proved so popular since May, “we’ll soon pick the next three locations,” said Kyp Perikleous, manager of the street furniture division of the city’s transportation department.

“It’s quite an attraction,” he said. “There are people standing in front having their photos taken ... some on the inside.”